Intentions to Marry, 1869

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840381, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Page 460

District of Christchurch Quarter ending Jan - Mar Registrar B Parkerson Jnr

Date of Notice

Names and Surnames of Parties

BDM Match

Condition

Calling or Profession

Age

Dwelling Place

Length of Residence

Marriage Place

Folio

Consent

Date of Certificate

Officiating Minister

151

13 March 1869

William Oliver Gridley
Annie Constance Bellitt

William Oliver Gridley
Annie Constance Belletti
💍 1869/7716

Bachelor
Spinster

Agent

24
19

Christchurch
Do

3 Days
3 Days

In the Church of St Luke Christchurch

1179

There is no person having authority to give consent

13 March 1869

Rev. E. A. Lingard

No	151
Date of Notice	13 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Oliver Gridley	Annie Constance Bellitt
BDM Match (96%)	William Oliver Gridley	Annie Constance Belletti
	💍 1869/7716
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Agent
Age	24	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	3 Days	3 Days
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Luke Christchurch
Folio	1179
Consent	There is no person having authority to give consent
Date of Certificate	13 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. A. Lingard

152

15 March 1869

Thomas Burt
Margaret Phillips

Thomas Burt
Margaret Phillips
💍 1869/7836

Bachelor
Spinster

Fellmonger

27
21

Ferry Road
Do

5 months
Do

In the Church of St John, Christchurch

259

15 March 1869

Rev. C. O'Bryan Hoare

No	152
Date of Notice	15 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Burt	Margaret Phillips
	💍 1869/7836
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Fellmonger
Age	27	21
Dwelling Place	Ferry Road	Do
Length of Residence	5 months	Do
Marriage Place	In the Church of St John, Christchurch
Folio	259
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. O'Bryan Hoare

153

15 March 1869

James Barford
Emily Culliford

James Barford
Emily Culliford
💍 1869/7656

Widower
Spinster

Gardener

28
28

Rangiora
Christchurch

9 years
3 Days

In the Church of St Michael, Christchurch

1151

30 March 1869

Very Rev. Dean Jacobs

No	153
Date of Notice	15 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Barford	Emily Culliford
	💍 1869/7656
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Gardener
Age	28	28
Dwelling Place	Rangiora	Christchurch
Length of Residence	9 years	3 Days
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Michael, Christchurch
Folio	1151
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Very Rev. Dean Jacobs

154

16 March 1869

George Plummer
Caroline Hore

George Plummer
Caroline Hore
💍 1869/7404

Widower
Widow

Carpenter

39
39

Christchurch
Do

5 weeks
Do

In the House of Rev Fraser, Christchurch

1070

16 March 1869

Rev. C. Fraser

No	154
Date of Notice	16 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Plummer	Caroline Hore
	💍 1869/7404
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Carpenter
Age	39	39
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	5 weeks	Do
Marriage Place	In the House of Rev Fraser, Christchurch
Folio	1070
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

155

17 March 1869

John Bain
Ellen Watkins

John Bain
Ellen Watkins
💍 1869/7407

Bachelor
Spinster

Cooper
Servant

34
26

Christchurch
Do

2 years
Do

In the Scotch Church, Tuam Street

1071

17 March 1869

Rev. C. Fraser

No	155
Date of Notice	17 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Bain	Ellen Watkins
	💍 1869/7407
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Cooper	Servant
Age	34	26
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	2 years	Do
Marriage Place	In the Scotch Church, Tuam Street
Folio	1071
Consent
Date of Certificate	17 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

156

18 March 1869

John Roebuck
Johanna Quinn

John Roebuck
Johanna Quinn
💍 1869/7302

Bachelor
Widow

Engineer

41
42

Christchurch
Do

1 month
3 Days

In the Roman Catholic Chapel, Christchurch

1035

18 March 1869

No	156
Date of Notice	18 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Roebuck	Johanna Quinn
	💍 1869/7302
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Engineer
Age	41	42
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	1 month	3 Days
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Chapel, Christchurch
Folio	1035
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 March 1869
Officiating Minister

157

18 March 1869

John Boyce
Rebecca Chapman

John Boyce
Rebecca Chapman
💍 1869/7719

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Cook

26
26

Christchurch
Do

3 Days
3 Days

In the Church of St Luke, Christchurch

1180

18 March 1869

Rev. E. A. Lingard

No	157
Date of Notice	18 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Boyce	Rebecca Chapman
	💍 1869/7719
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Cook
Age	26	26
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	3 Days	3 Days
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Luke, Christchurch
Folio	1180
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. A. Lingard

158

19 March 1869

Alfred Ashbolt
Elizabeth Mary Nuttall

Alfred Ashbolt
Elizabeth Mary Nuttall
💍 1869/7722

Bachelor
Spinster

Printer

20
17

Christchurch
Papanui Road

9 years
2 years

In the Church of St Luke, Christchurch

1181

John Nuttall, Father ; and Caroline Ashbolt, mother

19 March 1869

Rev. E. A. Lingard

No	158
Date of Notice	19 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alfred Ashbolt	Elizabeth Mary Nuttall
	💍 1869/7722
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Printer
Age	20	17
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Papanui Road
Length of Residence	9 years	2 years
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Luke, Christchurch
Folio	1181
Consent	John Nuttall, Father ; and Caroline Ashbolt, mother
Date of Certificate	19 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. A. Lingard

159

22 March 1869

John David Frankish
Mary Williams

John David Frankish
Mary Williams
💍 1869/7410

Bachelor
Spinster

Draper

28
23

Christchurch
Do

5 years
Do

In the House of Mrs Williams, Christchurch

1072

22 March 1869

Rev. C. Fraser

No	159
Date of Notice	22 March 1869
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John David Frankish	Mary Williams
	💍 1869/7410
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Draper
Age	28	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	5 years	Do
Marriage Place	In the House of Mrs Williams, Christchurch
Folio	1072
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 March 1869
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

These records have been automatically transcribed and must be verified using the page image (below)

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Attribution: This image was digitised by Archives NZ Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga and is republished here under CC BY. It has been cropped and rotated for convenience.

What is an Intention to Marry?

The 1854 Marriage Act required Pakeha settlers (and later Maori) to register their intention to marry from 1855. The resulting Notices of intention to marry were sent by the district registrars to the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages and bound into large volumes, each containing a year of notices. These registers were eventually deposited with Archives New Zealand.

What information does an ItM record?

A typical Intention to Marry notice records:

the bride and groom's full names
occupation of the groom (and sometimes the bride)
their ages
district where the marriage would take place
how long they had resided in the district
Where the marriage would take place (eg, a specific church)
Who would officiate the marriage (eg, a minister)
The date of the notice and also a date when the certificate was issued. Marriages had to take place within 3 months, and usually occurred within a week or so of the certificate date.
If one of the parties was under 21, a parent who consented to their marriage was usually specified

These details can provide clues for genealogical and historical research. Knowing the date and district makes it easier to look for wedding notices in Papers Past, and the amount of time that the parties had resided in a district can offer clues to whether a person was born in NZ, or when they immigrated.

However, finding individual records in the Intentions to Marry registers was typically a slow and manual process, usually requiring an in-person visit to Archives NZ's Wellington office (during limited opening hours) and using a handwritten card catalogue index to look up individual names.

Eight years of the registers had been digitised by Archives NZ prior to 2024, but even these digital versions required the use of a manual index and usually examining several pages to locate specific records.

What is the Intentions to Marry Project?

This project aims to transcribe the New Zealand Intentions to Marry registers (from 1855 to 1925) with the assistance of new technology (AI), making the records freely available and easily searchable.

The ITM records have also been cross-referenced with the registered marriages at DIA Births, Deaths and Marriages, where possible (a small fraction of the recorded intentions to marry did not become a registered marriage).

Currently we have almost all records between 1855 and 1908. More registers are being added almost every week.

The project is led by Luke Howison, a web developer who made the free genealogical research search tool NZ Ancestor Search Helper and Archway-style Collections Search. There are also some wonderful volunteers assisting with digitising the registers.

Can I volunteer to help?

Yes, you can! You can sign up to correct errors in the transcribed records and match ITMs with registered marriages.

I am also looking for Wellington-based volunteers to help me digitise more years of the registers. I can provide lighting equipment and a 'clicker' (to trigger your phone's camera).

How is the transcription done?

There are several steps to digitising and transcribing the records:

Digitising the registers (taking clean, straight, high-quality photos)
Processing the digitised pages by straightening, cropping and sharpening the images
Transcribing each page with a combination of AI tools
Matching each ITM with a registered marriage when possible
Human verification of the transcribed information

The main LLM (AI) used are the Google Gemini Pro and Flash models, which have excellent 'Vision' capabilities, and a generous free tier.

Archives NZ has released the register years they have digitised (1865-69, 1872, 1874 and 1880) under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 license.

The Intention to Marry registers (up to 1925) are more than 100 years old, so their Crown Copyright has expired, putting them in the public domain. This also applies to any 'mechanical reproductions' (eg, pictures or photocopies) of their content without substantial alteration.

The transcribed records on this website are released under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal license, which allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, even for commercial purposes, while giving credit to the creator (NZ Intentions to Marry Project).